1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to breathing disorders involving a patient's airway (e.g., snoring, sleep apnea, etc.). More particularly, but not by way of limitation, the present invention relates to apparatuses and methods for mandibular protrusion.
2. Background Information
Obstructive sleep apnea is a relatively common disorder which can produce morbidity and mortality. The disorder arises during sleep when the victim undergoes repeated cessation of breathing. This cessation results from an obstruction of the throat air passage (i.e., pharynx) due to severe narrowing or a collapse of the throat air passage. Repeated cessation of breathing reduces blood oxygen and disturbs sleep. Reduction in blood oxygen can cause hypertension, heart attacks and strokes. Additionally, sleep disturbances can produce excessive daytime sleepiness, headache, depression, irritability and cognitive impairments.
Various apparatus and methods have been proposed for the treatment of sleep disorders, including mandibular protrusion, in which the lower jaw is protruded to relax the pharynx and open the throat air passage.
The following patents include information that may be useful in understanding the present protruders, positioning devices, and methods, and each is incorporated by reference in its entirety: (1) U.S. Pat. No. 5,826,579, issued Oct. 27, 1998; (2) U.S. Pat. No. 5,921,942, issued Jul. 13, 1999; and (3) U.S. Pat. No. 6,273,859, issued Aug. 14, 2001.